The Rescue of Ten -Lorien Legacies fanfic
by Unordinarymind
Summary: This starts at the end of Fall of Five, with a few changes to the end because I like Eight too much. Hope you enjoy. Please review etc. if you enjoyed or have tips for writing - they are very welcome.
1. Chapter 1

Marina's POV

Five looks at Nine murderously before jumping into the air, the blade on his arm extending. I try to move Nine with my telekinesis but Five is holding him in place; he's too strong. Five hovers above the air for a second and then I realise how to stop him.

Five shoots through the air. Nine braces himself. Eight teleports in front of Nine, as if to sacrifice himself to save Nine. I use all my telekinetic power to throw Five of course. He slams into the tree, his blade stuck in the bark. Eight grabs Nine and teleports over to me.

"Heal him," Eight tells me, though he needn't bother. I place my hands over Nine's back and the balls of ice form between my shoulders. Six sits up, confused but alive. Eight revs the engine of our fan boat and we roar away, across the swamps of the Everglades.

Five roars with anger as the blade retracts and then he comes flying towards us. Six stops him in his tracks, throwing him into the swampy mud and then raising her hands to the sky. A storm springs up in response to her.

Nine winces in pain as his spine corrects itself and the destroyed muscles and nerves rejoin. He's taking a long time to heal. I just hope the others can deal with Five and the Mogs that are surely coming.

We are thrown sideways as Eight turns the boat round a sharp bend. Nine falls away from me but he's healed. My vision blurs at the edges and I crouch down to try and stop myself fainting. Eight gives me a concerned look.

"Watch out!" Nine yells. I look up and see Five hurtling towards the boat from above. Six is busy trying to destroy the waves off Mogs chasing after us but Nine grabs his pipe staff and throws is at Five. It hits his eye and he falls to the ground screaming in pain. Nine leaps off the boat to finish him off.

"Don't!" I shout. We can't kill Five. He's one of the last Loric left. He may be a traitor and I would have hated him if he had killed one of the others but we can't just kill him.

Nine punches Five hard in the jaw, sending him flying back into the mud. Nine takes his pipe staff and is about the throw it again when Eight teleports over to him and then brings him back to the boat.

"What did you do that for? He's a traitor!" Nine says, the anger is his voice more evident than I've ever heard it before.

"We can't just kill him," Eight says.

"Eight's right," I agree.

"A little help here," Six says, her voice strained. We all turn our attention to the Mogs. Six is still pummelling them with hailstones the size of golf balls and striking them with lightening. She's so strong, such a good fighter. I've got nothing compared to her.

Eight pulls me to my feet, "Can you take control? I need to help." He says. I nod and try not to look as nervous as I feel. Steering one of these things can't be that hard, right?

Sam's POV

I found him after so many years and now he's dying. Sarah is holding Ella, firing shot after shot at the Mogs to try and stop them hurting her but I can' so anything but look at my Dad. I remember how sad I was when I lost him; I can remember how happy I was when I found him. But now he's going. Now he's leaving me all over again.

John is still trapped in the nightmare, twitching and lurching on the bed, a layer of sweat coating his forehead. If he woke up, he could save my Dad. But he can't wake up.

Sarah screams and I hear a click. Her gun is out of bullets. I turn around as the Mogs swaps her and snatch Ella from her arms. My gun feels like a lead weight in my hand but I lift it and begin to fire at the Mogs. Before I can achieve anything, Ella is gone. I fall to the floor and look down at my Dad. Sarah runs to the doorway, looking around but the Mogs have already gone, taking Ella with them. I don't know why they want her, but it's my fault they've taken her. If I had concentrated harder, if I had not been so caught up with my Dad, then I might have been able to save her.

My thoughts turn to darkness and pain and a sorrow so strong I don't think I will ever recover from it.

My sobs quieten for a second; just long enough for me and Sarah to hear the lift doors opening.


	2. Chapter 2

**Firstly thanks to everyone who read chapter 1 and secondly thanks to all the people who reviewed/favourited/ followed my story! =D I appreciate this so much! =) **

**Anyway...please enjoy chapter 2 of the Rescue of Ten.**

**Reviews and stuff are greatly appreciated. **

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**John**

Six is dead now, in this strange impossible future. I feel no pain on my ankle but the pain of my heart is huge. Sam, my best friend, is dead on the steps of the Lincoln memorial. Six's body lies beside him. The humans gaze upon them with almost as much fear as they do Setrakus Ra and Ella.

That's not the most painful part of this dream though. The most painful part is seeing Ella.

I've no idea how Setrakus Ra thinks he can make her join his side. She is nothing like Five, who I can hardly believe is a traitor. How could Five turn on his own race? What happened to make him think that the Mogadorians were right? They destroyed our planet, killed our families and now they want to do the same to the Earth.

Ella rises, as does Ra and they look down on the crowd of starving, shivering, dying humans with disgust and contempt panted all over their faces. Ra turns to me and the rest of the scene disappears, leaving me standing in complete darkness staring at my enemy and my friend.

"You need to see the truth, John," Ella says. She's holding hands with Setrakus Ra and he smiles as he says this. Ella looks and sounds deadly serious, "There is no hope of the Loric winning. Join us and live or fight us and perish.

I open my mouth, ready to tell them how I feel and to try and get Ella, the real Ella, to fight him. But I can't make a single sound. I can't move or think or feel anything. All of a sudden everything just stops and I am left deaf, blind, mute and unable to move.

**Sam**

I shakily get to my feet and hand Sarah the gun. She's a got better aim than I have, and she's more likely to be able to fire it. I don't think I can do anything right now. He's gone – for real this time. There is no bringing my Dad back.

"Get John and hide, I'm going to find out who this is," Sarah says, "I'll find out where they're taking Ella."

Sarah seems so fierce, so determined that I wouldn't recognise her if I saw the old her, the one that lived in Paradise and walked around smiling and laughing as she took photos. She heads out into the corridor and silently walks towards the lift. I take one last look at my Dad and immediately tears blur my vision and my legs shake.

I take a deep breath and go over to John. The Mogs left him alone when they attacked. I thought they'd kill him – maybe that's why they've come back up. Now that there's no chance of hurting Ella, they might have come back for him.

They've already taken my Dad today. I'm not letting them take my best friend too. I choke back a sob as I lift John up. He's stopped convulsing and shaking and is now completely lifeless. Maybe the dream's ending, I think to myself, trying to remain optimistic. In reality I know that it's likely to have got a whole lot worse.

I hear three gunshots from a room down the hallway. There are no shots in retaliation, as far as I can tell. But when the floor shakes under my feet, shock hits me like a wall. Adam.

I drop John, hoping that I'm right and blot towards where I hear the shots. The floor shakes and wobbles beneath my feet. That's definitely Adam.

I can only hope that he and Sarah don't kill each other before I reach them.

"Sarah, don't shoot!" I yell as I run into the room. She doesn't take her eyes off the Mog who I instantly recognise as Adam. His eyes snap to me and he stops making the floor shake.

"I mean you no harm," Adam says, "I know what my kind have done but I'm a friend."

Sarah isn't convinced but I step in, "That's Adam – the Mog who rescued me, the Mog who my Dad..." I trail off and choke back a sob.

"Is Malcolm...?" Adam asks. His eyes show the same pain and guilt that I'm feeling. I guess my Dad was like family to him.

I don't meet Adam's gaze and I can't say anything. That's all he needs to see. Adam takes a shaky breath and Sarah glances at me.

"I'm sorry," Adam says. Sarah looks so confused and even I have trouble believing that a Mog just said that. I exchange a look with Sarah who lowers her gun but still looks at Adam with hostility and anger. It's hard believing that one of them could change sides.

"I'll go get the chests and the tablet. One of you two go and see if BK's alright and get John. We need to get out of here," I say. Some-one's got to take charge; they nod, knowing how urgently we need to get out of here. John and I are still wanted by the police and the FBI will be here in minutes.

"I'll get John," Sarah replies, not wanting Adam to get anywhere near a defenceless member of the garde.

"BK's on the roof," I tell Adam, "He's a chimeara."

"That'll explain where Dust and the others went," Adam replies.

"'Dust and the others'?"

"More chimeara. I found Dust when I was Dulce and then a Mog soldier I had, well, taken prisoner led to me to this base on Plum Island. They were experimenting on the chimeara but I freed them. On the way out, I found a control room – which is how I found out they were going to attack you. I should've called sooner," Adam explains, "Maybe then..."

He doesn't need to finish and I don't want him to. Living with the fact that Ella has been kidnapped and the horror of my father's death is painful enough without hearing it said.

I knew Adam was a friend but as he goes to the lift to find the chimeara I am still struck by how much he is willing to help us. He could be a great ally but he's also a huge threat. Choosing to trust him could be a massive mistake.

I bring myself out of my daze and run over to the control room to grab the chests and the tablet. I quickly turn it on and am relieved to see five dots still in the Everglades. They're safe. There is one dot in Chicago and one moving quickly away. At least we have some way of tracking Ella. Finding her is a priority when John wakes up and we find the others.

We regroup at the lift a minute later. BK is injured badly: blood and ash mixing all over his fur. The other chimeara surround him mewing, barking, squeaking, chirping or growling sadly.

"Is there a healing stone out?" I ask.

"No – it hurts less when Marina or John heal people. We haven't used one since we've had a healer," Sarah replies, "Do you think we can open his chest when he's unconscious?"

"Wouldn't hurt to try," I shrug. We press John's limp hand onto the lock and sure enough it glows and the lock falls off. We all breathe a sigh of relief as I grab the healing stone and go over to BK. Sarah quickly relocks the chest. She doesn't trust Adam as much as I do.

I press the stone to BK's side. He howls in pain but the wounds soon close up. We all sigh with relief and then look at the other chimaera. They don't seem injured, so I pocket the healing stone. Those chimeara saved our lives and BK. They must have rushed off to help BK and chase off the rest of the Mogs whilst Adam made his way over to us.

Once we're done, it's time to get out of here. The building is probably already filled with police and agents but we can't fly or float ourselves down the building like the garde can so we have to use the lift. Sarah's got some more guns and ammo and we all arm ourselves as we get into the lift.

"My Dad..." I begin.

"We can't Sam. I'm sorry but we just can't. It's going to be hard enough to get out of here as it is." Sarah's crying. I'm crying. Adam isn't but the grief is obvious in his face. The chimeara turn into numerous animals with huge teeth and claws. BK whines and gives me what I think is a sympathetic look – it's hard to tell because he's in the form of a huge tiger and tigers don't tend to look sympathetic very often.

I tuck the tablet in my waistband and sling John over my shoulder and hold a pistol in the other. I don't want to have to shoot it; I can still remember playing catch the flag and shooting Six. If I mess up like this now we've got no hope. Sarah has one chest and Adam has the other two. He's going to be using his legacy rather than guns.

The lift slowly descends and as we go lower and lower the noise level gets louder. There are police and people panicking. I can hear all of the sirens when we're on floor 10 and I realise just how much trouble we're in.

When the lift doors open at the bottom of the building, all hell breaks loose.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for everyone who's read chapter 1 or 2 and to those who have reviewed! =)**

**I'm feeling productive so here is chapter 3 of the Rescue of Ten. If you like it or have any suggestions for improvements please review.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Marina**

Eight transforms into a huge wolf-like creature with three snake heads sprouting from his neck. He leaps off the boat and charges towards the Mogs. Nine follows him, looking eager to fight. Sometimes I wish Nine wasn't so keen to kill Mogs, he can make some bad decisions in the heat of battle.

Six stays in the boat, using her telekinesis to fire Mog canons and create huge towering piles of ash in their ranks. The face in the clouds has appeared and is causing havoc among the ranks of the Mogs, sending bolts of lightning crashing down onto them and whipping up fierce winds. I concentrate on navigating the endless swamps. I've no idea if we're heading in the right direction; I'm just trying not to hit a rock or an island.

The battle appears to be going well; no-one is having any problems. But they Mogs wouldn't just have soldiers waiting for us, not anymore. Even if Five's plan to make us join him as traitors had worked, they would have prepared krauls and pikens. Eight and Nine know this, I'm hoping that they'll realise that we can't defeat all of them and get away easily. It'll be easier to run. We're more likely to live if we run. If we run then at least we can choose where we fight.

I look over my shoulder and see that Eight is still hard at work in his snake/wolf form and there's a cloud of ash where Nine must be. But for every soldier they kill, more are on their way. I can hear the Mog ship and I know that it won't be long until we can't keep fighting.

"Six we need to get away before –" I begin.

A roar interrupts me. It's echoed by another five. The pikens are here. Six of them. Fear fills me and I glance back over my shoulder. I can't see them yet but the piken will be on our tail.

Eight teleports back to the boat and Nine hastily retreats. It's nice to see that they both have the sense not to try and fight six piken and a few hundred kraul which are beginning to enter the swamps. Six and Nine hold off the remaining Mogs with cannons whilst Eight tries to clean to mud off the map.

"We need to go that way," he tells me pointing. I nod and point the boat in the direction he told me. I rev the boat but this thing is old and it wasn't built to go fast. I risk taking a quick look over my shoulder. They'll catch up with us in a few seconds.

"Marina!" Eight shouts more panicked than I've ever heard him, I spin back around and wrench the rudder to the left but it's too little too late.

The fan boat smashes against a rocky island and we are all thrown into the mud.

I land face first in the murky, muddy water. As my eyes adjust to the darkness I can see the krauls swimming quickly towards us. I rush to the surface and look around for land. I spot some and swim as fast as I can towards it.

Eight is standing on the water by the island, helping Six and Nine to their feet. I climb up next to them. This is all my fault.

"What do we do?" I ask.

"We can't run so we fight," Nine declares.

"They'll just follow us if we run," Six agrees, "Start with the piken."

Nine sprints off at super speed towards the closest monster. It stands over ten foot tall with raptor-like claws and thick muscled arms. It runs on all fours but rears up onto two as Nine begins his assault. Eight runs off over the water and joins in. Six turns invisible. I look around, wishing that I had a more offensive legacy.

I pick up a huge rock with my telekinesis and throw it at the piken's head. The boulder smashes into hundreds of pieces. The piken seems dazed but otherwise unaffected. Luckily it was a good enough distraction. Nine leaps into the air and brings his pipe staff down, straight into the monster's heart. It roars in agony before falling into the water: dead.

I would celebrate but that's only the first. I begin pummelling incoming Mogs with rocks and trees to try and help the others as they focus on the next piken. Once I get hold of a Mog cannon, I feel a bit safer. I use it to blast to the Mogs and kraul whilst I hit the third piken with more rocks. We're doing better than I expected, better than I could have hoped for.

Once the third piken is dead, we're all tiring and the other three are injured. The Mogs and kraul keep coming and now they have to fight off two piken whilst dealing with them. I feel useless by comparison. Blasting them with cannon fire and rocks is barely denting the force of the Mog's assault. I have one use: alerting Six what the Mogs are doing from my hidden vantage point through our telepathy.

The two pikens charge towards Nine and as they do I see something, or rather some-one. Some-one is hobbling towards Eight and the place where I think Six is fighting invisibly. At first glance, it's hard to make out who it is but when I see the blade on their arm and the blood on their face I have no doubts.

Five makes his way towards Eight, hiding behind some Mogs. I need to stop him.

As soon as the image of Eight impaled on a blade in New Mexico enters my head, desperation pushes me forwards. He is not going to die. I will not let him die.

I dive into the swampy water and let it enter my lungs. It's dark down here but that is no problem for me. I swim as fast as I can towards Five and the Mogs, hoping not to bump into any alligators or worse.

When I can see the thick, scaly legs of the first piken a few meters to my left, I know I'm in the right place. I take a deep breath to steady myself and then I leap out of the water.

I grab a sword from an unsuspecting Mog and immediately stab him with it. He collapses into a pile of ash so I turn to another. There are more of them than I anticipated and Five hangs back. He's a cowardly traitor and right now, revenge is the only thing on his mind.

I fight hard and am soon killing Mogs left, right and centre. I can't see Five anymore and that worries me. That worry drives me to fight harder. I need to protect them, I need to help them. I spin round, under a Mog's blade before bringing my heel up into his groin. He doubles over and I swing my sword. As I do I see Five.

He's charging towards Eight, his blade extended and his face full of rage. No. Not Eight. Anyone but Eight. He can't. He won't. I won't let him. Anger mixes with my fear and desperation and something inside me snaps like brittle ice.


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello again. Thank you to all who have read and reviewed my story! =)**

**My creative streak is ongoing at the minute so here is chapter 4, hope you enjoy. Please review if you enjoyed or have any tips for writing.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Marina**

I jerk my hand upwards, acting purely on instinct. A stalagmite of ice shoots up from underneath Five's foot, impaling his foot and outstretched arm. Five screams. Eight spins round. Cold dead anger rushes out of me with a shiver. The Mogs scream as more icicles skewer them. The water and plants around me freeze and the grass wilts. The cold feeling from my healing legacy is multiplied a hundredfold inside of me but the cold is different; it wants to hurt, not heal.

A piken snakes its dragon-like head towards Nine. A dagger of pure ice forms in my hand and I throw it at the piken. It hits its eye and the piken howls almost as loud as Five is screaming.

The second piken roars as an invisible hand thrusts a Mogadorian sword straight into its brain. I walk slowly towards Five. Six becomes visible and Nine laughs at Five. Eight appears at my side.

Five looks around. He doesn't know who's done this to him so he hates us all. He's trembling in pain which only makes Nine laugh harder.

"Leave him," I say my voice cold, empty and emotionless. Six and Eight look at me strangely. Nine looks disappointed. "We can't kill him so we leave him here."

I turn and walk away over the hard, frozen soil. Eight teleports in front of me. "The Mogs will just heal him and then we'll have to face him again. We should try and make him see the truth," he says.

"You're the deluded ones!" Five yells, pushing past his pain, "Your cêpans were wrong! You're just condemning yourself to death! The beloved leader will make you pay!"

"We leave him," Six agrees, joining me and Eight. Nine retracts his pipe staff and runs ahead to see if there are any more Mogs tying to trap us. None of us want to listen to Five.

Eight and I take Six's hands and we turn invisible. Five will have told the Mogs everything, including the location of Nine's safe house. With no way to find them, we'll just have to hope that the others are all right.

**Sam**

I duck behind a fancy sofa in the lobby as bullets fly over my head. Sarah fires back and the lobby floor starts rocking back and forth as Adam uses his legacy. We could use some help but John is still limp and lifeless in his strange sleep.

We knew that they'd be a lot of people trying to work out what had happened and trying to arrest whoever they decided was responsible but we didn't know that it would be this bad. Our only hope is to get one of Nine's expensive cars and make a run for it. Unfortunately to do that, we need to get through the lobby which is crawling with police officers. The FBI isn't here yet but they will be soon. The news crews will be here too, and that'll only make matters worse.

The problem is that we don't want to kill these officers; they're only doing their job, they didn't ask to be caught up in an intergalactic war. I don't want to hurt them. If they were Mogs it'd be different but they're human, like me. However, I'm a suspected terrorist so they have no reservations about killing us.

I peek over the edge of the chair. A bullet whizzes an inch away from my ear. I duck back down and try to work out what to do. We're about fifty meters from the entrance to the car bay and once in there we'll have to hope that the keys we've snatched are the keys to a fast car.

The chimeara have crowded around Adam, who's hiding by an upturned table a few meters away. He seems to be giving them instructions. I hope he knows what he's doing – from all the battles I've fought against Mogs they never seemed good at fighting with good tactics, they used brute force and numbers. Maybe he's different; he certainly looks more human than most Mogs do.

Sarah's shooting back but she doesn't want to hurt these people either. It won't be long until they stop being cautious and get over the fact that the floor is rocking like the ocean in a storm. I tighten my grip on John, hoping he won't fall off my shoulder. I glance at Adam. He nods and discretely points to the door to the car bay and then hold up five fingers. I nod and begin counting down as he tells Sarah.

On two, the chimeara surge forwards, changing from one shape to the next so fast it's hard to see what they're changing into. The police stagger back and stop firing. They're scared, which in understandable. All I can tell about the chimeara's forms is that they aren't found on Earth.

We charge towards the exit and the chimeara are fast on our heels, slowing down the rate of their changes. The police start firing again and Adam swears loudly. They can't stop us reaching the door and we sprint down the corridor. The police begin to follow.

Adam is lagging behind and limping badly. "Go," he says, the pain in his voice evident, "I'll stop them following us." Yet again he's helping us. I don't know what he's got planned but I nod and keep running. I can be confused later, right now we need to get out of here.

When a massive rumble makes the walls of the corridor shake and the tiled floor crack I realise that Adam has collapsed the door. It'll hold them off, but not for long. Sarah presses the button on the keys and a car unlocks. It's a sleek black convertible that would be fast without any modifications that Sandor installed.

I wrench open a door and the chimeara fly into the back. Sarah dumps the chests in the boot and I lay John down on one of the back seats. BK, now in his beagle form, whines and nuzzles John's face. A few tense seconds pass before a huge golden wolf with Adam on its back runs towards us, skidding to a halt by the car.

Adam awkwardly climbs in the back his chimeara joins him. "Thanks Dust," He says before we're all thrown violently forward as Sarah slams the accelerator down.

The car's engine roars as Sarah speeds out of the bay and the wheels scream as we make a sharp turn onto the street. She drives straight through a red light but it doesn't matter, we're already being chased by the police.

Adam winces and I turn around. He's been shot in the lower leg and it's bleeding a lot. The chimeara that was a golden wolf is now a lizard and it looks at me curiously. I have the healing stone in my pocket. I could heal him, if it heals Mogs. I glance at Sarah but she's too busy weaving between lanes to give me her opinion. After a moment's hesitation, I take the stone out of my pocket.

"I don't know if this works on Mogs, but it should heal that," I say. Adam looks gratefully at me and takes the stone, pressing it to his leg. A few seconds pass without anything happening.

"Does it work on humans?" Adam asks.

"Yeah," I reply, "Can you feel anything happening?"

Adam's about to shake his head when he notices something. When his back arches and he grits his teeth, I know it's working. The lizard on Adam's shoulder gives me a grateful look. After a minute, Adam takes the stone away, still wincing, and rubs his leg.

"I guess it does work on Mogs," he says looking at his newly healed leg as he passes the stone back to me, "Do you think it'll heal Four?"

"How do you know he's Four?" I ask, suddenly a lot more suspicious of Adam.

"You'd be surprised what the Mogs know, and besides, there was such a fuss over him back at that school in Ohio he had to be four. They would have just tailed him if he'd been any other number," Adam explains.

"I don't know if it'll heal John. He's not injured he's just..." I trail off. I don't know how to explain what's happened to John.

Sirens blare behind us but Sarah just speeds up. I hope she knows where she's going. I pick up the tablet and plug it into a USB port on the dashboard. There are still five dots in the Everglades. Everyone's safe. "Head towards the Everglades. We can meet the others near there and then decide what we're going to do," I tell Sarah. She nods and we continue to race through the city.

We reach the edge with little trouble thanks to Sandor's modifications to the car. The police lose our tail before they can call in backup and I start to relax. We got away. It'll all be fine. We'll find the garde, save Ella and wake up John. As we tear away from the city along the motorway the car is silent.

Then John starts screaming.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi. Thank you to all those who have been reading and reviewing and all that stuff, I appreciate it so much! =)**

**Here is chapter 5...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**John**

"John..." Ella's voice breaks the silence, "John please, listen." She sounds tired, drained and shaky. I try to look around and, for the first time since the darkness came, I can. I spin around but there is still nothing to be seen anywhere.

"Ella?"I call out.

"I can't fight him, John, he's too strong, he has too many weapons. Find the others, John, find them," Ella's voice is like a gentle breeze. My left wrist starts to tingle. I'm relieved to feel anything after the deathly numbness of the last few hours.

"Try Ella, you've got to try. Don't let him –" I begin.

"I can't do anything to stop him but I can warn you all. Please don't trust Five and..."

"Ella?!" I call. It's too late. She's gone. Before I can do anything, the tingling in my wrist intensifies a thousand times, almost like it does when I'm wearing the red bracelet. But this is a different pain, a burning sensation that grows stronger every second until I am overwhelmed by pain and can do nothing but scream in agony.

**Marina**

I lean with my head out of the window, deep in thought. Five is a traitor. How he was turned from our side, I don't know and I expect I never will. It troubles me that something like that could happen, that one of us could be twisted and made into a weapon against us. I know that Ra would like to turn us into his slaves almost as much as he'd love to kill us.

We're staying in a cheap, smelly and damp hotel far enough away from the swamps to be safe. We ran from the swamps. If Five dies, then he dies. If Five lives, then he'll know that we're a threat to us and he'll be more careful next time. It'll send a message to the Mogs as well but that's more of a problem. There'll be more of them next time.

I'm so deep in thought it's not until Eight clears his throat that I notice he's teleported into the room. "You okay?" he asks, "You seemed...distant on the way back."

"Just worried," I say, trying to stay calm. It's hard to stay calm when his eyes meet mine.

"Don't worry about Five; I won't let him hurt you," Eight replies, walking over to me and leaning against the wall. I can feel my cheeks going red but luckily Eight's looking outside "The views were certainly better back in India."

I know what he means. We're right by a road and there are buildings in every direction. The Himalayas seemed so peaceful, so serene. I'd like to go back there, one day if I could. I scratch at my left wrist and say, "Yeah..."

"Got any plans or are we just going to stay in here until the others show up?" Eight asks, sneaking me a look and a grin.

"Six and Nine will want us to stay inside," I tell him, knowing what that tone of voice means. "We're not in a safe house anymore, Eight."

"So serious," he laughs. He's scratching his left wrist. The tingling has got worse in mine. I scowl slightly. I don't like this. Eight's grin drops, "Marina?"

The tingling has turned into a pain. A burning, tearing feeling that makes the flesh sizzle and pain streak down my arm and into my hand. I cry out and grab my wrist. Eight's concerned look turns to one of confusion and pain; he's feeling it too. Eight clenches his fists and takes deep breaths. I do the same.

I know this pain. It's the same pain we get when some-one dies. The same pain we feel when some-one's number is burned into our ankle.

When the agony begins to fade I look down at my wrist. Two circular symbols are branded onto my skin. I don't know what numbers they are but Eight mutters "Five and ten."

"Five and ten?" I repeat. Eight nods and takes my hand. The world goes black and acid climbs up my throat as we teleport into Nine's room. We find him looking at his wrist like it's got a mind of its own. Six opens the door and walks in. She went out to try and see if the Mogs were coming. Since she's not covered in ash, I think we're safe.

"You got it too?" she asks. We all nod.

"It's another Loric charm but I've no idea what it could be symbolising. Five can't be dead – we'd know if he was," Eight says, "I don't know anything that Ella and Five have in common."

"Who cast it?" I ask. Everyone shrugs.

"It wasn't any of us," Nine replies, staring at his wrist, "I'd like to think I'd know if I did something like this. Either it was pittacus-boy Johnny or Ella. I don't think Five would do anything like this."

"Maybe it's warning us about something, like the other one?" I guess.

"Ella would never be a traitor like Five," Six says. We all nod and I feel bad for even thinking that she might be. Ella is sweet and loving, Five is cruel and heartless. He might be a traitor, but Ella would never willingly do that. If Setrakus Ra wanted Ella to become like Five, I don't what he'd have to do.

"I think we should think about this in the morning. It's late," Eight says, "It might be easier with a clearer head. Plus, by tomorrow we might have news about the others."

What he's saying makes sense we all head back to our rooms. Six and I are sharing, as are Nine and Eight. As soon as my head hits, the pillow a welcome sleep fills me.

**Adam**

Four, or John, starts screaming and his wrist lights up like a torch. The chimeara all stand to attention. Sam and Sarah twist round in their seats until Sarah remembers she's driving.

John bolts upright, clutching at his wrists and his eyes snap open. He screams through his teeth and rubs his wrist. I have no idea what's wrong with him. Sam looks equally confused.

"Where are we?" John asks looking around, "Where's Ella and Malcom?" His eyes pause over me and his gaze turns more hostile, "Who's he?"

"He's Adam; that Mog who saved me and...and my Dad," Sam takes a shaky breath, "He's on our side. He rescued the chimeara."

"Where're Ella and Malcolm?" John repeats, not taking his eyes off of me. A few of the chimeara crowd around me, trying to get John to understand that I mean him no harm. I wish One was here. She'd tell me what to say, if I should say anything. Right now, I think I should let Sam do the talking.

"Nine's penthouse got attacked. They knew where we were. I don't know how but they knew exactly where we were –"

"Five," John says. "Five's a traitor. He was working for them."

I'm puzzled for a minute. Surely converting a Loric to the cause would be an achievement that everyone would know about? Surely we'd all know about him. But then again, he'd need to be kept secret. He'd be no good if everyone knew he was a traitor. Ra is clever; he'd know not to tell everyone about his greatest advantage.

Sam and Sarah are pummelling John with questions about how this is possible. He simply shakes his head, "I don't know how, I don't know why but he is. He's on their side..." John turns to me "Did you know?"

"Ra wouldn't give away such a secret. If one of you found out Five is on their side, he would be no use as a spy. I had no idea," I reply.

John nods. He's more trusting than I expected. The Loric are so different from the Mogs I grew up with, it's hard predicting how they'll react. "Where are Malcom and Ella?"

"My Dad's dead," Sam sobs. After all this time, it gets to him and he begins crying inconsolably. I wish I could say I knew how he felt, that I could comfort him. I know how it feels to lose some-one you're close to but not how it feels to lose a parent who you love. Malcolm was like a father to me, but he wasn't my father. The sorrow and grief I feel for him pale in comparison to whatever Sam is feeling.

"I'm sorry," John says, "I'm so sorry."

We wait until Sam has calmed down before anyone says anything else. Pain will always know where to hit you hardest and once there it can turn you into some-one else. Sam needs time, more time than we have, but he still needs it. When he's calmer he continues, his voice shaking and cracking, "Ella was taken...the...the Mogs took her...I don't know why...they, they wouldn't hurt her. They just took her. We tried to get her...it was too late."

John shakes his head and buries his head in his hands. It's the first opportunity I get to see his wrist. It's not glowing anymore but two symbols are burnt into his skin. I recognise them as a Loric charm, but I don't know what they mean.

"Do you think Ella will be okay?" Sarah asks.

"Honestly?" John says.

"Honestly."

"They won't hurt her but..." John trails off, "In the dream, the nightmare, the Mogs had invaded. Ra was sat in a throne and by his side was Ella. He called her his heir. She was different – she sentenced Six to execution. After that it went dark. Before I woke up I heard her. She said that Ra was too strong, that she couldn't fight him. She told me not to trust Five and that she could warn me but then her voice gave out. After that my wrist started burning."

"Have you seen your wrist?" I ask.

"It was glowing," Sarah interjects, "It was glowing like your lumen when you were screaming."

John looks at his wrist, "They're numbers but I don't know which ones. Henri never told me. It's not One, Two, Three or Four but it could be any of the others. It's like the charm on my ankle."

"Could some-one cast another charm?" Sam asks.

"I don't know," John sounds frustrated. He looks out the window, "We need to find the others...maybe they'll know."

We drive on until we're all too tired to continue. Sarah pulls into a hotel and we fall into the beds and the others are soon asleep. The chimeara lie on the floor in a multitude of shapes and the room is completely silent.

I've missed something. Something obvious that I shouldn't have missed. One would know – she'd tell me what it was. But One's not here. One will never be here again and wishing won't make her come back. I roll over and face the wall. I can think tomorrow, right now, I need to sleep.

When I wake up hours later, there is a cold metal blade digging into my neck.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi again. Thank you to all those who have read the last 5 chapters and are reading this one and another load of thanks to those who have reviewed/followed/favourite my story.**

**Anyway, I think I've left you in suspense for long enough, so here is chapter 6...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Setrakus Ra**

They caught her. Five must have done a better job than I expected at luring the others away than he did at fighting them at the swamps. I smile and stroke the top of my golden staff. Now I only have to decide how I will use my new weapon: my heir.

She's strong, stronger than the Loric think. I noticed straight away, I felt her presence tugging on my attention; I knew what I could turn her into. She's trapped right now, trapped in a dream of the world we will create, hand in hand. The fourth is in there too, she heard my orders and trapped him as I told her to. I almost laugh when I see how easily I control her. That control will lessen as she grows, but I don't care. She will need to be an independent soldier to be at her most effective. My hold on her is as temporary as her loyalty to the Loric resistance. That's the way it should be. That's the way I want it to be.

I stand up from my throne and walk through the dark, stone corridors. It will take my heir a few more hours to reach here and join the others, but she is already within my grasp. Her mind: so young, so much potential, so weak yet so powerful. If she knew how to wield her power, I would not be able to take her mind but since she does not, and never will, it does not matter. When I am finished with her, her strength will be nothing but a tool. I have nothing to fear from her: not now, not ever.

I enter another room in my private chambers hidden deep within my mountain base. The Loric know where this base is, but they can't do anything. They can never do anything; they are nothing but ants desperately trying to stop themselves from being crushed under my foot. I place my staff by my side and pick up the cobalt blue, swirling orb.

I expect the Loric fear and hate me and my ability to implant myself into their dreams and trap them as I wish, but they would fear and hate me more if they knew where the power came from: Lorien. I hold the orb in both hands and run a hand down its smooth shiny surface. Loralite is the rarest gem found on Lorien, only at its centre, but it is by far the most powerful. It's what the phoenix stones are made from and the garde draw their power from it. I draw some of my power from it.

I take a deep breath in and enter the dream world. My heir is still fighting as hard as she can. With my training she will be able to fight so much stronger, a fact which pleases me so much I smile. She's calling out for the fourth, trying to get him to realise what I'm doing. That won't do at all. I tighten my hold on her mind and she is forced to stop. Within a few more seconds, she succumbs to my power.

I have her now.

**Adam**

"Hello there Adamus," A rough voice snarls in my ear. Why did I not think to check for a tracker on the car? They would have easily found out which cars belonged to the garde when they'd found out where they were hiding. Idiot, I curse myself.

I elbow the Mog behind me and send a violent wave of seismic force through the floorboards. He falls backwards, his knife scraping into my neck. Warm, sticky blood drips down my neck. I spring up and turn around. Sam is holding a Mog canon and firing at the small army of Mogs who have entered the room. Sarah is doing the same, but her aim is better so she's able to kill more of them.

John is surrounded by Mogs but the chimeara are helping him fight off the Mogs who are rushing to climb in the broken window. We're on the ground floor so they're having no problems getting in from the door or window. I send a tremor by the door and the roof collapses in on itself, blocking their entrance. Sam and Sarah turn to blasting the Mogs by the window. I duck to avoid being shot by Sam's overenthusiastic volley of fire.

"Sorry!" He yells. I turn to window and send a strong wave of energy under the Mogs outside. They barely react. I'm used to humans screaming and shouting and running away but these aren't humans. I run over to a Mog cannon lying on the floor and join John at the window. Sam and Sarah have nearly killed all of the Mogs in here.

As I shoot Mogs down, I see a huge black truck parked in the car park. Krual and Piken will be hiding in there, waiting to burst out. Cars have fuel tanks. Fuel tanks can explode if the fuel gets too hot. John is throwing balls of fire from his hands. I sense a plan coming on.

"John get the truck!" I shout above the noise of battle. He must hear me because a moment later four balls of raging flame stream towards the truck. Just before they hit it, I make the ground beneath the truck tremor, making the truck tip over. The creatures inside howl. The fireballs hit the fuel tank.

The explosion makes my ears hurt and my eyes are left almost blinded by the fire that consumes the monsters and the five Mogs who got too close. I turn my attention back to the Mogs.

The vat-born soldiers continue to wave their swords and desperately try and earn the title as the one who killed the garde, or the one who killed the traitor. They're caught up in bloodlust and a thirst for honour that disgusts me. The few trueborn left are hanging back, trying to direct soldiers but failing to come up with any interesting strategies that might help them win.

It takes a few more minutes before John, the chimeara and I are finishing the Mogs off. We're tired from the fight and using our legacies but just when we're nearly done, there is an explosion from behind me. I turn around to see more mog soldiers spilling out of a newly formed hole in a wall and I can only watch as one of their swords slices straight across Sarah's chest.

She falls silently. John races over to her. Sam is in such a daze that if it weren't for Dust killing some Mogs surrounding him, he'd be dead. I start firing and making the floor rock. John starts screaming or crying as he places his hands on Sarah's wounded chest. Nothing's happening. When he realises this he cradles her body in his arms, still sobbing, and then goes back to his original position. He must have a healing legacy.

When the fighting ends, John still hasn't moved. There is nothing he can do. She's gone.


	7. Chapter 7

**Thanks to people who have read/reviewed/followed/favourite my story! It is appreciated immensely. Please enjoy chapter 7...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Marina**

We've been here for two days. There have been hundreds of reports about the John Hancock gunfight and almost as many on the destruction of a hotel. John, Sam, Sarah and a pale boy were spotted at both. Malcolm's body was found at the John Hancock centre. There is no mention of anyone who could be Ella.

I expected Eight to try and remain optimistic but he and Nine have had more dreams with Setrakus Ra. He claims to have captured Ella. They said that John was in the dreams too but that he didn't seem himself.

Eight and Nine are getting more sleep after their restless night. For some reason Nine has decided to sleep on the ceiling. Six has gone out to try and find the others; she goes out every day and walks the streets invisibly, trying to find some sign of them. I go out every day and search the internet for signs of the others. Apart from a dark haired girl apparently walking unharmed from a collapsed building and then being seen to move things with her mind, there's been nothing suspicious. It sounds suspiciously like the Argentinean girl that we thought might be Five before we met him. She's disappeared again, along with a woman said to be her mother.

I walk over to the window and see a truck park in front of the hotel. I watch it, ready to wake the others if necessary. Sam gets out of the driver's side and a pale boy with dark hair gets out of the back followed by John. The boy looks human-ish but there's something about him and the more I see him, the more certain I feel. He's a Mog. I'm confused until I remember Malcolm talking about the Mog who saved him, the Mog who helped him save Sam.

I shake Eight awake. He looks a lot less tired, "Has she found them?"

"Yeah," I say before standing on a chair so I can try and shake Nine awake. He jerks up and then falls straight on top of me.

"Mogs?" He asks, looking down at me. I push him off and Eight pulls me up, giving Nine a look when he thinks I'm not looking.

"Six has found the others. They've found that Mog Malcolm was friends with," I reply. Nine extends his pipe staff.

"He must have told the Mogs where they were," Nine snarls.

"If that's the case then why's he still there?" Eight argues as I watch John traipse into the hotel. He looks rough, even from this distance. I have no idea what would have made him feel like that. We're all upset and angry about Ella being taken but we're not upset to the same degree as John looked.

It takes a minute for them to walk up the stairs to our room. Eight and I are both ready to try and hold Nine back. We can't trust Mogs, but we're not going to turn down a possible ally. There could be other reasons as to why they were caught on the way here. Sam enters first, then Six who becomes visible. When she's visible I see what happened.

Sarah's dead.

**Six**

Nine, Eight and Marina all wear the same look of shock, horror and sorrow as I become visible and lay Sarah's body on the nearest bed. Marina rushes over to her side. Eight goes with her. Nine spots the Mog boy who I still don't completely trust and his pipe staff glows.

"Don't," Sam sounds tired. He's driven all the way up here, "He's on our side. He saved the chimeara, he saved us in the John Hancock centre. There was a tracker on the car, Adam didn't tell them anything."

Nine doesn't look any less suspicious until the chimeara turn from the small winged insects hovering near Adam into a numerous animals. He still isn't happy but his pipe staff retracts for now.

"What do we do now?" Eight asks. We all instinctively look at John: the leader, the one who comes up with a plan. His eyes are red, wet and have darker circles than Adam does. His face is wet and shiny from recently shed tears. His shoulders are stooped; his gaze is heavy and his mouth downturned. Greif isn't what he's feeling right now; whatever he's feeling is stronger.

"I think we should find a safe house and then work out where they'll have taken Ella. Once we know that, we can rescue her and finish Ra off," I say.

"Anyone got a safe house?" Sam asks. He looks rough too. Malcolm's death would have hit him hard. I almost want to hug him and John, comfort them but I can't do that in front of everyone. I need to be strong and Sarah's death has proved to me that war is no place for romance. Besides, I've spent two days with Eight and Marina – if I see anymore romance or flirting I'll throw up.

"I have," Nine replies, "It's not as great as Chicago, but it'll do."

"Where is it?" I say. Marina cries out. We all turn.

Marina's hand is on Sarah's shoulder but she jerks it away as a patch of ice forms where her hand was. We've been helping Marina control her new legacy and so far, she hasn't done anything out of control. The ice spreads and Marina wobbles a bit; whatever her legacy's doing is taking its toll on her. Soon Sarah is encased in slab of pure ice.

"Marina? Are you okay?" Eight says, stepping into protective boyfriend mode. She faints. Eight places her on the other bed and sits down next to her. He holds her hand and looks over at Sarah before asking, "What did you do?"

John has sat down next to the block of ice. He runs a hand over the surface, his lumen glowing faintly because of his unrest. The block of ice glows in response. He barely notices, too caught up in the sight of his dead girlfriend.

We're all silent. We have no idea what this is or what it's meant to do. I'm sure Marina meant well but I don't think she knew what she was doing either. John's hands glow brighter, as does the ice. A faint pink blush creeps over Sarah's cheeks and then fades. After repeating five times, the cycle stops and the ice stops glowing. John noticed that.

"Do you think it can heal her?" He asks, his voice hoarse and quiet.

No-one replies. We don't want to get our hopes up for no reason.

"The safe house is near West Virginia," Nine says, trying to distract us from our confusion, "When we're ready we can go there and destroy them."

There's another silence, broken by John crying. The ice glows again and then it goes completely opaque. We all turn to the sleeping Marina. What has she done?


	8. Chapter 8

**Hi. Yet again, I thank all those who read this and all those who review or favourite or follow or anything else. I appreciate it immensely. =)**

**Anyways, here is chapter 8.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**John**

"I'm going too," I say. My voice is hoarse and gravely from having not used it for days but I make sure they know that there is no point in arguing with me.

The others all turn around. We're sat around in the living rooms in Nine's safe house. It's a secluded, almost abandoned, three bedroom house sat in the middle of nowhere. Inside, although not as luxurious as the Chicago penthouse, it's beyond anything Henri and I would ever have lived in. It may look basic from the outside but Sandor has installed hundreds of security measures, there are three secret rooms that I know about and there is an enormous underground bunker fitted with training equipment and ammo.

Eight and Marina exchange a look. Six barely reacts. Sam and Adam look uncomfortable. The chimeara look up at me from across the room. BK gives me a pleading look. Only Nine has the guts to say anything, "Listen, John, I know you're upset about –"

"I'm going," I reply although I don't take my eyes off the secret door to the cellar, where she's kept in her icy coffin.

"We could use a healer," Eight shrugs. Everyone looks at Marina. He gives them a death stare; he's not risking _his_ girlfriend's life to save Ella, kill some Mogs and teach Ra a lesson, "John's been there before too – and I mean he's broken in before, not he's been in a cell before."

"We can only take one other person," Six says, "If Five hadn't stolen the Xithirus then we'd be able to take more and still be invisible but since we can't it's me and one other person."

They've already decided on two people – they'll need Six to be able to make her companion and Ella invisible on the way out. Nine wanted an all out attack but they reminded him that last time there was an all out attack, Ra still escaped and we may have died if it wasn't for Adam diverting some of the forces. It's also been decided that another team will divert the Mogs attention when we fight and a few will stay behind to try and guard the chests and Sarah.

"I'm going," I haven't spoken in days but my voice is absolute. They will not sway me. Sarah's death will not be in vain. I will make them all pay.

They all exchange a glance.

"Why can't we just attack them?" Nine complains.

"We will be doing an excellent job of diverting them," Marina reminds him, "We'll get to kill more Mogs than they do, if they stay invisible for most of the mission."

"They'll get a chance to kill Ra," Nine adds.

"If he's there," Adam replies, "The Mogs have more than one base – I could be wrong about where he is. He could be at Plum island or another base like Ashwood for all we know."

"I'm going with Six," I repeat, "We will get Ella back and make them pay." I stand up and leave the room. Even with my back to them I know that they're giving me the same look they have been for the past four days: sympathy and concern.

They think I've gone mad. I'm not mad. I'm just waiting for my time to strike back at the people who have taken everything from me.

**Marina**

We wait until John is out of earshot before we continue talking.

"We can't talk him out of it," Sam says, "The only time I've seen him like this before was when he saw Sarah before the FBI caught him. There's no way we can change his mind."

"As long as he doesn't have another breakdown in the middle of the base we'll be fine," Six replies, "Any idea what the best time for us to attack is?"

Adam pauses before shrugging, "They won't let their guard down...you'll want to make the distraction look convincing so don't walk up there at midday. Dawn's probably the best time."

We plan until the sun is low in the sky. John has just walked down to see Sarah, brining her to the forefront of our minds.

"Do you know what you've done yet?" Nine asks me.

"No," I reply, "I didn't mean to do anything!"

"We know, don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing bad," Eight comforts me. I fight the blush rising to my cheeks. The others sigh with annoyance. We've been talking a lot more recently – more than we did at Chicago. They've noticed and seem to hate Eight's flirting as much as I find it cute.

"I wasn't trying to hurt her, I was just feeling sad and I wished I could heal her so I put my hand on her shoulder and then that happened," I try, and fail, to explain.

"Who knows what we're capable of," Eight says.

"John's cepan left him a letter saying that we were meant to grow stronger than the original ten elders. We're capable of much more than we know," Six says.

"I guess we'd better get some rest," Sam yawns, "I'm going to bed."

One by one we all follow his example. Tomorrow we fight; we'll need to be ready. I don't feel ready. What if my legacy goes out of control again and I hurt some-one? I'll be able to fight with the others but what if I'm no good at it? I've trained a lot since developing my legacy but I still feel weak and helpless compared to Six or Nine. Still, if Five shows up I make him pay for almost killing Eight. I will protect him: as a healer, as a warrior, I will protect those I love. Nerves or no nerves, I won't lose control, I tell myself.

I'm about to go into my room, which I share with Six, when a hand grabs my arm and pulls me to the side. I jump and turn round, ready to attack. Eight grins as I spin around, "Good reflexes."

"You made me jump out of my skin!" I say, catching my breath.

He laughs a little, "Can we talk?"

I nod and he loosens his grip, sliding his hand down my arm and then intertwining his fingers with mine. His grin turns into a small smile and his emerald eyes glint in the sunlight coming in through a window. Eight leads me outside and stands on the porch, looking out on the trees that conceal us.

He looks serious, much more serious than normal. When he speaks, his voice lacks its usual childish joy, "Back in India, I told you that one of my legacies was a sixth sense, right?"

I nod, confused.

"It's never been wrong before."

"Eight?" I ask nervously.

Eight pauses before replying, "Something's coming, Marina, something bad...something so bad we can't do anything to stop it."


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello. Thanks to all of you who are still reading and reviewing. Yesterday I got to 50 reviews so an enormous thank you to everyone! =D**

**Updates will be less frequent as I'm going back to school in a couple of days but I'm hoping to update at least once (hopefully twice) a week.**

**Hope you enjoy chapter 9.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Marina**

The morning sun shines over the mountain, momentarily blinding me despite the fact I'm hidden behind a small copse of trees. Six and John left five minutes ago. They're going to wait nearer the entrance to the cave, ready to enter as soon as we've started our 'attack'. Two chimeara and Sam are staying behind at the house, watching the tablet and guarding our chests and Sarah. The rest of us are waiting for Nine to signal the beginning. Eight and I are hidden in the trees with two chimeara. BK is with Nine closer to the edge of the mountain. Adam and Dust are hidden about 100m away from me and Eight. We're all waiting nervously.

One of the chimeara nudges my arm. That's the signal. Eight begins the countdown. Five seconds later, a huge tremor rushes through the ground beneath us. A few trees fall and rocks roll down the steep hill. A few seconds later, we hear the sirens coming from the base directly beneath us. Hopefully we haven't trapped Ella or released a beast. It was the only way we can get their attention away from the base and draw them far enough away.

Eight's warning last night stays in my mind as I take a deep breath and try to stay calm. The soldiers will be here in seconds. We could be hurt today, we could be killed. Eight refused to tell me more about his foreboding feeling, which hasn't helped; if I knew what it was, then I could prepare.

As soon as the first few soldiers run over the top of the hill, Nine charges and BK follows him whilst turning into a bear-like creature with curling horns and lethal claws. The soldiers are ash before they can even try to fight back.

They have enough time to raise the alarm so that other soldiers will follow them. When the rest of the Mogs pour onto the hilltop another tremor rocks the ground as Adam and Dust charge forwards. Adam shoots a Mog canon he stole from the battle at the hotel whilst Dust joins BK in devouring a group of soldiers approaching from another direction. John and Six should be entering the cave now. I look down at my watch. It's ten past six am. They said that they'd be as quick as possible. I'm just hoping that's no more than an hour or so.

Eight and I remain hidden. I look over at him, "That thing you said would happen–"

"It's almost happened already. We can't stop it," Eight replies, "You'll be fine, don't worry."

"What about you?"

"I'm not going anywhere apart from back to the house after we're done with all this."

"Do you know what it is?"

"Not quite."

"Will you tell me when you know?"

"Of course," Eight shakes his head, "Have a bit of faith in me; I'm not going to find out what's wrong and then do nothing about it."

The chimeara nudges me again and I turn back to the battle.

"You ready?" I ask Eight.

He just smiles before turning into his ten-armed lion-man form and charging with the chimeara at his heels.

**Six**

John and I wait by the entrance. We're invisible so the guards can't see us but we have to remain silent if we want to go undetected. Being silent is easy enough for me, but John is having a bad day. He woke up crying and has spent the whole journey here sniffing and sobbing. Every time he went quiet, it was only a matter of time before he started crying again. He's been quiet for about half an hour now; definitely the longest time so far. I'm just hoping that for both our sakes, he can hold back his grief for a while. Once we're out of there, he can collapse in a pool of tears, but right now we need to be strong. Being strong isn't always easy, I know that from experience, but sometimes we have to put our own pain away for a while to help some-one else.

When the ground beneath us shakes and a few boulders fall from the ceiling of the cave, I pull John forwards. We need to be quick so it's a relief that I have the way to the cells where I was kept memorised. I'm hoping that Ella will be there. Just because we've escaped from them before doesn't mean that the Mogs will change the location of the cells. More likely, it'll mean higher security but we can deal with that.

The maze of tunnels bring back many memories: the Mogs attempts to kill me, my escape and Katarina's death. I shudder involuntarily at the thought of that moment when he killed her. I vowed that I would be a worthy tribute to her memory; that I would never give up the fight. Now is another chance to prove that; it's another chance to get revenge. Revenge is what made John come here. Revenge made him stop crying. Revenge is what persuaded him to fight with me rather than the others.

A siren blares over the compound as more rocks fall. Soldiers sprint past us, canons ready to fire and more run towards the huge corridor where the beasts are kept. From the roars that echo through those tunnels and the beasts John and Sam described from when they ventured down there, I know that the others will have a tough battle. They've have worse. They've had to battle one of our own before.

The corridors weave deeper and deeper into the mountain side, until the rumbling earth is far behind us. We'll have to hope we don't get stuck down here. Telekinesis will help us move any rocks, but it'll also give away our location. I'm certain that the Mogs will find out when we rescue Ella that some-one has broken in, but any clue given to them is a chance for them to catch us, a chance for them to kill us.

We skid to a halt in the corridor filled with cells. The doors are all flung open and the force fields are all deactivated. No-one's here. They must have put Ella somewhere else, if she is here.

"They kept our chests where the beasts were," John whispers, "Maybe they thought Ella would be safer in there too."

For a second I wonder what could have changed the Mogs from their usual stupid ways but then it becomes obvious: Setrakus Ra.

I pull John back towards the bridge over the pit. They've already taken Five from our side. I'm not giving them any more time to try and do the same with Ella.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hi again. Firstly I would like to thank everyone who has read any of this because I passed 1000 views a few days ago! =) More thanks to the lovely people who review and stuff like that. You all make me so happy with everything you say/do.**

**Chapter 10 is here so I hope you enjoy...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Six**

We run through the corridors as fast as we dare; our footsteps loud and echoing in the corridors. Luckily the Mogs won't hear us over the blaring sirens or the crumbling of the rocks. As we reach a large corridor leading to the bridge over the green lava, we skid to a halt. A figure is flying towards the opening of the cave. Five. The figure is abruptly pushed into a stone wall with force so violent that I can practically hear his screams from over here. He falls. I smile.

I wish that I could stay here and take more anger out on Five but instead I press on through the crowds of Mogs. Ella's safety is more important than that traitor. John takes a shaky breath. I silently will him not to break down. I pull him forwards, feeling him tremble from the build up of a sob. I would tell him to be quiet but we're surrounded by Mogs.

I press onwards and climb over the barrier at the edge of the rock ledge. John does the same. "In three," I tell him over the noise. We silently count to three and then we jump, bracing ourselves for the landing.

We fall past the dark stone walls until our feet hit the ground. The shock ripples through me and John. Our hands separate. For a second, John becomes visible. Everyone turns to him. Soldiers grab blasters. I can see the new tear tracks on his face but as he sees the Mogs the sadness dissipates and a mad anger replaces it. His lumen light up his palms and as the Mogadorian's charge, he gets out his dagger and smiles a mad smile. John charges at the Mogs and begins cutting them to shreds with a ferocity that would make Nine pale.

I follow him snatching a blaster with my mind and firing at the Mogs that surround us before I charge into their ranks and throw a soldier to the ground. I grab his sword and slice his neck. He crumbles into ash and I turn to my next victim. John is throwing balls of the green lava at the Mogs and a few beasts which are being transported to the battle overhead. A layer of ash soon coats the floor. I grab John and pull him away. We've killed most of the Mogs. More will come soon, but we need to concentrate on Ella.

He has a mad look on its face and the despair has almost completely disappeared. I remember killing the Mog who killed Katarina. That feeling of vengeance I felt seems to be magnified by a million for John. Sarah meant everything to him. Without her he has nothing to keep him sane. She was what kept him going. She was what he needed. She's gone. He will never finish getting revenge from a loss like that. We turn invisible and John leads me down the tunnel towards the beast and hopefully Ella.

John told us the details of his dream. Ra called Ella his heir. I'm not sure that Setrakus Ra would keep Ella in any form of prison if he wanted to again favour with her – unless he was planning to torture her to force her to switch sides. I don't think he'll succeed in changing her loyalties but given enough time, anything could happen. This is our only chance to get her and if John thinks she's in here we've got to at least try.

A huge tremor in the ground shakes boulders from overhead. John and I stumble and try to block the worst of the boulders from overhead. The beasts howl in response and begin to charge at the bars at the entrances to their cages, most of which are already buckled from the earthquake. Mogs run around desperately trying to confine them or escape. We're the only people who are heading further into the corridor, towards the biggest beast. It's awake and judging by the sound, it's huge and angry. Ella had better be in there. We won't have much time to deal with anything else after killing the beasts and getting her out of whatever cell she may or may not be in.

We reach a door at the end of a corridor. John opens it and we slide in.

"Who's there?" A terrified Ella asks from above us. John was right.

I look up as the door closes behind us. Ella is in a cage suspended from the ceiling surrounded by a force field. I look over at the beasts. There are two of them and they are staring right at us. They have four legs all with five claws as long as my forearm sprouting from their toes ; they have tails like maces that are being waved in the air; a thick grey skin covers a muscled body; their mouths hang open, revealing the razor sharp teeth dripping with drool. Many people would be terrified. I'm not one of those people. The creature on the left sniffs and its yellow eyes seem to light up.

"Ready?" John asks.

"John?!" Ella calls out.

I let go of his hand and John points his lumen at his feet so that flames engulf him. I swing the Mog sword in my hand and run towards the creature on the left. It takes a deep breath through its nose and turns to me. As I get closer the whiskers become apparent. I guess the Mogs wanted to try and make something that wouldn't be fooled by my invisibility. I turn visible and run under the beast. It tries to trip me but I leap over its outstretched leg and then thrust my blade up through the thick hide into the beast. It howls in agony and rolls on its side. Thick, dark blood pours out of the wound as I snatch my sword away and dive to the side to avoid its frenzied attack.

Warm pain slashes into my arm as I fail to avoid all of the claws. John is busy with the other piken so it's just me against this ugly thing. I use all of my telekinetic force to slam the piken into the wall whilst it's still struggling on its side. It roars and charges towards me at surprising speed. I only just manage to get out of the way.

The beast swings its tail. John's shield expands and takes the force of the blow but he is still catapulted across the room and his dagger skids along the floor a few feet away from him. He sits up, winded from the force. The piken he was dealing with turns to him, its evil yellow eyes glinting.

I'm hardly thinking as I desperately throw my sword at my piken and sprint towards John.


	11. Chapter 11

**Hello again. Thanks to people who are still reading and to the people who review and follow and everything. I passed 10 follows this week! =) lots of smiley faces and love to all those who follow and review and favourite. =D**

**Sorry for the wait but I had two tests on the first week back at school so I was a little busy. Anyways, hope you enjoy chapter 11...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Six**

Before I can reach John's dagger, it rises shakily in the air and then flies towards the piken about to bite John in half. The dagger flies into the piken's eye and the piken howls before crumbling to dust. I'm confused until I remember about Ella. Her telekinesis must have developed.

"Six behind you!" Ella screams. I dive to the left and the piken stumbles as it misses me. John stands up and retrieves his dagger from the pile of ash. I leap onto the piken's back and cling on to a thorny spine that sticks up on its back. I pick up the sword I dropped with my telekinesis as the piken bucks and runs around trying to throw me off. The piken chases after John and then spins around as I grab my sword. It slams into a wall, crushing my leg between its body and the thick concrete wall. I grit my teeth but a cry of pain just escapes me.

John dives at the piken, trying to injure it. It turns a sharp corner and I hold onto the spike as tightly as I can. I take a deep breath, ignoring the agonising pain in my leg and the warm, wet feeling soaking my trousers and dripping down the beast's side. The metallic smell of the blood only seems to make the beast more angry and violent. It snatches at John, scraping at the back of his leg and making him fall. John twists so he is face up as it places a clawed foot over his chest and roars in his face.

I have a second to act and I take it, plunging the sword into the piken's skull. The beast freezes and then crumbles into another mountain of ash. I land on the floor and then hobble over to a wall and lean on it. With the adrenaline starting to fade, the pain is only getting worse.

Ella looks down at me from the opposite side of the room. John heals his torn leg and then runs over to me. His hands are like ice as they heal my leg, setting the bone and repairing the muscle. It takes a few minutes before he's done.

"Thanks," I say to John before turning to Ella, "Are you ready to leave now?"

**Eight**

I tear at the Mogs with my arms and teeth whilst Nine batters them with his staff and the chimaera kill as many as they can get their teeth and claws into. Adam is blasting them from afar with his canon whilst he tries not to use his legacy too often. If we trap Six and John we won't be doing us any favours. Marina is throwing ice towards the Mogs but she skids to a halt as she approached the edge of the hill.

I need to concentrate on fighting but Marina is a constant tug on my attention. I like her more than I admit or show. I want to protect her but I don't want to isolate her. Maybe I should tell her the truth about the bad feeling. I know what it is, telling Marina could help me deal with it, work out what to do rather than hope that I'm wrong or hope that it'll sort itself out.

A sword slices through one of my arms making me concentrate fully. With a swipe of one of my arms, I take the Mog's sword and cut him in half. He is one in at least two hundred Mogs that are streaming towards us. Six and John has better be fast. We're fighting hard and we won't be able to keep it up for too long. We're just lucky the beasts haven't arrived yet, or worse Five.

A layer of ice shoots over the hillside, covering the grass is frost and making it impossible for the Mogs to climb up the steep incline.

"Good thinking!" I call out to Marina, my voice a deep growl. I don't know if she can hear me above the noise of the Mogs who are now crowded at the bottom of the slope, struggling to climb. I snatch a blaster with my telekinesis and begin firing whilst I continue to fight with my teeth and claws. I would celebrate our current victory but there are thousands of Mogs in a base this big and the beasts will probably be worse than we've battled before. I'm not normally this worried or pessimistic but seeing what I saw in that dream coupled with my nagging feeling is enough to get my spirits down. The others haven't noticed yet but they will soon. Marina definitely will; all the more reason to tell her about it.

A huge earthquake shudders beneath my feet. I look over my shoulder for a split second. Adam and Nine are having trouble. Marina shoots me a look as she fires another blast of ice at a Mog. I teleport over to the others.

I shrink back into my normal form and grab a sword from a Mog, my other one being lost when I was fighting. He turns but I've already teleported away and stabbed another in the back. A Mog throws a punch; I duck and kick him, making him stagger back. I knock his blaster aside with my hand before stabbing him. Another wave makes me stumble and I hear Nine yell something. Before I can wonder what he said, a roar echoes across the hillside.

Two beasts jump over the hillside and charge towards us. I can hear the smaller kruals struggling to get over the ice covered hill but they are the least of our worries. The two chimaera fighting with Marina change into beasts and run towards the piken, tackling one of them to the ground.

I decapitate another Mog before Nine sprints at super speed past me towards one of the piken, his pipe staff held aloft. Adam glances at me before I teleport away to stop another crowd of Mogs. I kill two easily before a sharp pain slices down my arm. I throw the Mog who hurt me into a tree with my telekinesis. He falls to the floor, unconscious. A chimaera runs past me and joins Nine in battering another piken to death. As soon as this one dies, another five charge up the hillside. The ice must be melting under the warm sun.

I glance over at Marina, hoping she can replace the icy barrier, as I batter my way through the endless Mogs, piken and krual that are making their way up the hill. She looks dazed and confused. Her eyes meet mine and I see the fear they hold before she falls to the floor.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hi again. Lots of =) and thanks to people who are still reading and reviewing and all that stuff.**

**Here is chapter 12, I hope you enjoy.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Sam**

The garde have been gone a few hours now. I've spent most of that time searching the internet for news and found nothing new. Both of the chimaera are patrolling the house, looking for any sign of the garde's victory or defeat as well as anyone who could pose a threat to me, the chests or Sarah. I stand up and walk over to the cabinet that hides one of the doors to one of the hidden rooms. This one leads down into the basement where Sarah is.

I hesitate before opening the door and heading down the narrow spiralling staircase. I have nothing to fear from Sarah but the memories that she brings are painful. I'm having a hard time dealing with her death and my Dad's. They were the only other humans, the only people from my past, the only people that would understand what it's like not to be an alien fighting an intergalactic war. The garde were all prepared in some way to fight this war. I was not. I'm still adjusting to that.

I take a deep breath as I enter the basement. When I turn the light on I see the chests are lined up against one wall. Sarah is left in her ice on the floor on the opposite wall to chests. I crouch down next to Sarah and place my hand on the ice. I instantly snatch my hand away in pain and confusion. The ice was hot. Not cold but hot. I nurse my throbbing hand and look back at the ice. It's melting slightly. I run upstairs and, after a moment of confusion, I dart over to the desk and pull out one of the cheap phones we bought on the way here. They'll be fighting now; they won't be able to answer. Still, they need to know.

I hesitate before punching in Nine's number. He'll have left his phone in the car so I don't have to worry about anyone being distracted. I leave a simple message: _The ice on Sarah is hot and melting_.

I run back downstairs with the phone. They'll want news as to what's happening. None of us know what Marina has done but we all know it's taking its toll on her. She fainted from exhaustion when she first did this and ever since has been sleeping much more than the others. We're all worried about her and Sarah. She's going to tire quickly today and if the ice melting is a new development, I wouldn't be surprised if she feels a drain in her energy.

I don't dare touch the ice again, so instead I sit and watch it slowly melt as I wait for the others to come back. This could be one of the longest waits in my life.

**Adam**

Fighting my own people was once hard. I doubt it will ever be effortless because a naive little part of me refuses to believe that I am the only traitor. It's a very small part of me, but it's still there. Right now I have little regret as I shoot down hundreds of Mog soldiers that would kill me just so they could have the honour of a promotion before they destroy another planet. Once I understand why they would want that; One changed that. She changed me in so many ways.

I push her memory out of my mind for a second as a sword flies towards my face. I duck out of its way and shoot the soldier who fought with it. I send a ripple through the ground, unbalancing the soldiers before I continue to pick off individual Mogs and turn them quickly into little piles of ash. As they fall I see Marina fall to the ground. Three Mogs approach her as she lies there defenceless.

I want to rush over to her but I'm trapped here shooting the countless Mog soldiers and the beast which Nine is trying to defeat with the help of the chimaera. Before I can think of anything or the Mogs can hurt her, Eight teleports so he is next to Marina and then disappears leaving a Mog's blade slicing through thin air.

I call out for Dust and he charges over to me in the form of a giant bear. He barrels through the Mogs, brushing them aside as though they are nothing. He skids to a halt by my side and I have enough time to say, "Four!" before the Mogs are attacking again.

To the Mogs, I'm either talking about John or I've gone mad, but to any of us four is part of a code. Four means that Marina, our healer, is down. Four means we need to get out of here and hope that the others can get away. Dust roars so loudly that I'm sure he can be heard even above this battle. Mogs skitter out of his way as he runs over to Nine and helps him finish off one of the piken. I start to back away but continue to shoot and send strong tremors into the rock beneath my feet.

The Mogs notice our slow retreat and it just makes them fight harder. Running away is the hardest part of this plan. The Mogs will just chase us. We're going to have to take a lot of detours to get rid of as many scouts as we can. Even then, we'll be staying at hotels until we are certain that we're not being followed. We don't want to tell the Mogs where Nine's safe house is.

Nine begins to retreat rather reluctantly but the beasts have stopped pouring from the base. Six and John must have done something in the pit where the piken and krual are kept. I'm not sure what they're doing down there, I didn't expect Ella to be down there.

Nine jumps onto one of the chimaera's back, grabbing a blaster from the floor and shooting the Mogs that chase him. Dust runs over to me and I copy Nine's example. The Mogs charge waving swords and firing blasters at us as we retreat. Nine overtakes me and I take a deep breath. I'm tired from fighting and using my legacy but if we're to escape, I have to act now. It might make it harder for Six and John but the garde are strong. They'll figure something out.

I focus my mind and then I remember seeing Malcolm's dead body, I remember seeing One killed, I remember the way Ivan and my father looked down on me, I think about my family turning their back on me, I think about all the times where my father 'joked' that Ivan might have to get my inheritance. Soon anger is coursing through my blood like oxygen. The Mogs that fire at me only add to that immeasurable force. I take a deep breath and the ground rears like a wave at sea in response before crashing back down with a force so hard that people will hear the rocks cracking for miles.

The Mogs don't stand a chance.


	13. Chapter 13

**Firstly I am sorry for not updating is so long. I have two exams next week as well a mountain of homework so updates will be slower than I'd like but anyways, thanks to those who continue to review =) and thanks to the people who have favourited and followed this =)**

**Here is chapter 13...**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Adam**

We've lost most of the Mogs but a few scouts will still follow us. Our best hope is to drive away as fast as we can, and deal with whatever forces are sent our way. If a scout gets in our way, we kill it but we're not looking for another battle; I'm exhausted from the fight: we all are.

Dust weaves through trees, now in the form of a horse, and I cling to his back trying to concentrate on listening out for Mogs rather than the darkness eating at the edges of my vision. Eight was meant to come back and help us after he had teleported however many times it took him to reach the car but he hasn't. Either he's in trouble, or he's just worried about Marina. I hope it's the latter.

I hear a trampling in the woods to my left and spin round to see a scout hidden in the bushes. We've run into one of the perimeter guards. He shoots but Dust swerves out of the way, making me almost fall off. I rebalance and, after ducking another shot, shoot him between the eyes.

We pass the two trees bent into each other so that it looks like their embracing and I can finally see the other chimaera and Nine ahead of us. The car isn't too far away. I glance over my shoulder and from this angle I can just see what remains of parts of the mountain. I think John and Six will have a bit of trouble getting out. I had no choice; we had to get away and they would have just kept chasing us and calling up more soldiers and piken if I had left the entrance wide open.

Nine leaps of his chimaera and runs off. Dust follows in his tracks as the other chimarea wait for us to catch up. The car is hidden from the base by a small hill and some trees, but from here, I can see Eight kneeling on the backseat, holding Marina in his arms. He sees us coming and opens the doors. I jump into the passenger seat and Nine gets in the driver's seat whilst the chimera dive into the back.

As soon as we're all in the car, Nine slams the accelerator down and we speed away. I look over my shoulder at Eight, who is not hiding any of his concern or fondness for Marina as he looks at her. He passes me the healing stone, which we had tucked between the back seats just in case.

"Any idea what happened?" I ask before placing the healing stone over the worst of my injuries and waiting for it to take effect.

"I looked at Nine's phone; there's three messages from Sam," Eight replies. He waits for me to finish writhing in agony as I heal before continuing, "The ice on Sarah started melting and was hot, then it began to glow slightly and now it's starting to become transparent again. The last message was sent two minutes ago, the first ten minutes ago. Marina fainted ten minutes ago."

"Tell him we can't come back yet. We've got to get them off our tail first," Nine says as he turns a sharp turn onto a road. Eight nods and replies to Sam's text. John and Six have hidden a phone near to where we parked the car. They should update us as to where they are when, or if, they get out.

We speed away as the sun climbs higher in the sky, hoping that everything will, for once, be alright.

**Six**

It's taken us a while to break the force-field but once we'd found the place where it was being powered from, it was easy enough to send enough boulders and fireballs at it until it gave up. Compared to that, unlocking Ella's cage and freeing her will be easy. I've gone out in the corridor twice to check for incoming Mogs. I couldn't find any, and the reason soon came apparent: many of the beasts have broken out from their cages and now roam the corridors. Most of them are attacking or eating each other. We're safe in here for now.

We can't unlock the electric lock on Ella's cage but it's fairly easy to break the door with our telekinesis and bend the bars so that she can crawl out. Before we can say anything, Ella throws her arms around me in a tight hug.

"I knew you'd come," she says happily, "I knew you'd stop him."

"We weren't going to leave you with Ra," I assure her, "Did he hurt you?"

Ella shakes her head, "He wants me to be his heir. He said he would protect me, not hurt me. I don't know why he wants me to be his heir – "

"Calm down," I tell her, "You're not like Five. We can trust you. You're on our side."

"Where are the others? Why's John crying?" Ella asks.

I turn to John; he's stood in the corner sobbing. "Sarah died," I explain, "The others are outside –"

Before I can say anything else a huge earthquake rocks the floor beneath me and huge chunks of stone fall from the ceiling. I shield us with my telekinesis and John snaps to his senses. He flips his dagger out and runs out into the corridor. I take Ella's hand and we turn invisible before I follow in John's footsteps, the ground still wobbling and the rocks still falling from above.

"Is Ra here?" I ask Ella as John slices through a crowd of Krual who haven't yet been buried by the rocks.

"He was," Ella shouts over the noise of screaming Mogs and sirens blaring from all direction. I though the plan was not the totally ruin the base, at least not whilst John and I were still inside, but that seems to have changed. Something must have gone wrong to make Adam need to do this. I push on through the corridors, slashing down krual and trying my best to protect Ella. A piken digs its teeth deep into my hand and I fling it into a rock, blood flying from my hand. I stab another krual before we skid round a tight bend.

There is a rumble and the sound of shifting rocks. I give Ella a piggyback and look towards John. He nods once and we run as the tunnel finally gives up and caves in behind us, burying hundreds of beasts and hopefully a few Mogs with them.

I ignore the pain in my bleeding hand as we run as fast as we can towards the stairs that lead to the tunnel to the exit. Mogs see us and some charge. I grab a cannon with my mind and hover it over our head, shooting as Mogs whilst I run. John throws fireballs and throws some of the boulders that have dropped from the ceiling towards the incoming Mogs.

_You could float towards the exit using your telekinesis. I think the main ladder is broken._ Ella says to me telepathically. I have a feeling that John was also told so I don't hesitate to begin hovering above the ground and then floating myself up to the rocky ledge. John does the same, still firing fireballs and firing cannons as he does.

We reach the ledge and I let Ella down so I can hold her and John's hands, John's grip is gentle, as if he knows how much pain I'm hiding. We turn invisible and run towards the blocked exit, ready to leave this place far behind us. A stream of cannon fire comes from behind us and my shoulder screams in pain. Ella screams as she's hit but we keep running and pushing boulders telekinetically out of the way. We won't give up, not when we're so close to escape.

I leap over a large rock which shatters as another Mog randomly fires his blaster towards us. Ella moans in pain and I become visible for a short moment to assess the damage. On her right calf there is a huge burn mark form the blaster. I pick her up in my arms and push on as I climb over rocks towards the faint glow of sunlight. John is just ahead of me, moving the worst of the boulders out of the way and using them to block the way behind us.

We've nearly made it to the exit when I hear a noise. A noise that can mean one thing, one person. I turn towards the place where I heard a blade extending from an arm sheath.


	14. Chapter 14

**Hi. Sorry about not uploading in a while. I had writers block but I think it's gone now.**

**Thanks to the people who have reviewed or read or anything else. =)**

**Here is chapter 14, I hope you enjoy it.**

**I don't own the Lorien Legacies.**

**Six**

"John, heal Ella," I say as I place her gently on the floor and then spin the Mog sword in my hand. I can't see who's waiting for us, but only one person knows where the Xitharis charged with my invisibility went. He said he lost it but it hardly surprises me that Five doesn't know the difference between losing something and stealing it. I remain invisible and listen carefully. John is firing at the Mogs and protecting Ella but over the noise, I can just hear the footsteps edging carefully towards me.

I reach out with my telekinesis and find Five with the Xitharis taped to his back. He must have crawled down to his chest after I'd smashed him into the wall and healed himself with a healing stone. Shame; now I'll have to beat him up again. Nine will be even more annoyed now that he's not getting to join me in this.

Five moves closer to me and I pretend to prepare to smash the Mogs with boulders. He charges and I spin round and kick him in the groin. Five hunches over and I use telekinesis to rip the Xitharis from Five's back where he's taped it. Five looks around, his remaining eye wide with shock, and I turn invisible and swing my sword down at him. Fives skin turns to metal and my blade skids off it. He tries to sweep my feet out from under where he thinks I am but I dodge his feet and push him into the wall with my mind. John throws a boulder at Five, which he deflects.

We don't want to hurt Five but neither of us are in the mood to do anything but leave this place. As John heals Ella I throw boulders at Five to keep him away. As soon as Ella's back on her feet, she starts throwing small boulders at the Mogs whilst John turns his attention to Five who's face is a mask of anger and madness. One of his arms change to rubber and it wraps itself around John's neck, the blade on his other arm extends but before he can use it I bring my blade down on Five's outstretched arm.

Five throws John into the wall behind me before he reels his bleeding arm back in. John's eyes go blank and empty as he slips down to the floor. Ella cries out as she sees him. Five grimaces with pain as the blood continues to run down his arm and onto the floor. I run at Five and knock him to the floor with a fast uppercut. He staggers back, injured but not unconscious. He can't see me but that doesn't stop him trying to locate me by feeling the space around him with his telekinesis. I keep moving as Five begins to hover above the ground, his arm dripping crimson rain steadily onto the floor.

A wave of telekinetic force sweeps the air sending rocks flying and Ella to the ground. I stay on my feet through pure luck – I'm partially protected by a rock. Five turns so his back to me and I unleash all the energy I have left towards him. Five goes flying outside of the cave and then onto the ground.

He yells in agony and I waste no time. From here, I can see that at least one of his legs is broken. He can't run after us and I don't think he's stupid enough to follow us by air. He'll bleed out soon enough if he tried. I sling John over my shoulder. The back of his head is badly bruised but Marina can heal him when we find her. Ella takes my hand and we run.

"You'll pay for this!" Five shouts as we leave, "The beloved leader would have forgiven you once but not anymore! He'll make you wish you were dead!"

Ella grips my hand tighter. I remember the nightmares she suffered and I can only guess how terrified she is right now. Hopefully those nightmares won't return. We break into a run as we reach the path back to the car. I notice the quiet immediately; the others are gone. Something went wrong. As we run, I notice the rocks, dirt and trees spread over the floor. It's clear an earthquake larger than any I could imagine stuck here. It makes life harder for me and Ella to run away but we leap over the rubble and ignore the Mogs that stick up from the rubble. Most of them are crushed but a few scouts are running into the woods, desperate to find the remaining garde.

As we dart through the forest as fast as we can the cracks in the rocks slowly disappear and the scouts thin out. I shift my hold on John and Ella speeds up, as if sensing how urgent getting to Marina. I didn't have enough time to asses John's injuries; we'll just have to hope it's not too bad.

It takes longer than I'd like to reach where we had parked the car and when we reach it, the car is long gone. I drop John and turn visible. There is a large bruise on the back of his head, I check his pulse and am relieved to find it steady and strong.

"He'll be okay, right?" Ella asks. She's nervously wringing her hands and keeps glancing at the bushes behind her. I don't blame her for being paranoid. We're still too close to the base for my liking. As soon as I've got the supplies we hid, we're out of here.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," I assure her, "We just need to catch up with the others."

Ella nods as I begin hunting through the roots of a large tree until I find the metal box filled with a few bits of food, a couple of bottles of water and a cheap phone.

I grab the phone from the box and pass Ella a packet of crisps, which she rips open and eats ravenously as I dial Nine's number.

**Adam**

The silence is broken by the ringing of a phone. Nine picks up and holds it to his ear as he speeds over the tarmac. I don't think he paid any attention to the speed limit and I completely understand why – the Mogs are almost certainly on our tail.

"Six?" he asks. Eight looks up from where he's cradling Marina's limp body. She's gone pale and started shaking a minute ago. We got another message from Sam about the same time saying that he could see that Sarah's wound, the one that killed her, is healed and that the ice is melting faster. We can only hope that this process doesn't drain Marina of all her energy.

Six says something to Nine and he looks worried. The worry doesn't last long and is quickly replaced by his usual sneer and then anger.

"I said I should have come! Why didn't you finish him off?!" Nine yells.

"Five," Eight explains. His hearing, like all Lorics, is better than mine so he's picking up some of the conversation, "Five's hurt John badly. I think he's unconscious."

"Six? What was that?" Nine asks again, some worry re-emerging and the anger quieting down a little. I hear a scream from the phone and the line goes dead.

We all exchange a glance before Nine turns a sharp u-turn and we begin the race back. Somehow today just got worse.


End file.
